Sea World/San Antonio

We visited San Antonio with a surprise visit for the kids to Sea World at the end of June. The weekend went really well and was probably one of our best vacations yet! :)

We stopped off at Baylor on the way to San Antonio, so I could get a new Baylor shirt. The kids had gotten shirts and Micah got a hat our last visit, so it was my turn! After much searching I was able to decide on the right shirt, then the kids were ready to go see the bears. I wish I had some good pictures of the kids with the bears, but we had left the memory card at home, so pictures were not taken until we purchased a new card in San Antonio. The kids loved looking at the bears in their new living space. Baylor in the past couple years renovated the bear pit from a sad concrete slab with a pool and waterfall, to a beautiful grassy area with pool and large rocks, shaded den, and second grassy area with more rocks and some toys for them to keep themselves entertained. The bears were just sitting around for the most part, so the kids were easily bored and ready to move on soon after.

Thanks to our movie players, we had an uneventful road trip with few "How much longer?" inquiries. Once there, we settled into our hotel. I have never stayed in a Drury Inn before, but I definitely will again. This one was really new, so everything was still nice, and they had the free happy hours every night with food and drinks, so dinner was free on Friday night! :) Aiden was so excited about sleeping in (and jumping on) the queen bed, he said he could stay there the whole weekend! We went out that night to see the Alamo and take in the Riverwalk. We made our first stop the Alamo since it would be getting dark out soon, and we didn't want to miss out on it. The kids were bribed into taking some pictures.

Afterwards, we walked down to the Riverwalk to enjoy some of the sights. I love San Antonio, and I am pretty sure that's the only other place in TX I would consider moving to if we had to move out of the Dallas area. It just so gorgeous with the trees, the hills, the surrounding hill country is amazing, and the history behind the city itself. We did a Riverboat ride and learned even more about the area, and it was really neat. Baylie and Aiden were very excited to go on the boat, but Baylie was just as excited to see the ducks swimming along the river.

They both waited very patiently for the boat to come and pick us up, although Aiden was a little worried when the boat we were going to load started up before we got on, so I had to explain that he was just pulling closer to the side to tie up the boat.

Everyone enjoyed the boat ride, and we got a longer one that usual because they had opened up one of the gates that is usually closed.

The next day, Aiden was ready to find out what the mystery destination was. We lasted until we drove into the entry to Sea World, and Aiden saw the sign with Shamu. He was excited to say the least and began filling Baylie in on what to expect. Upon walking in, we decided to try look at the schedule to get as much done as possible without getting too hot. We tried to start off at the dolphin-beluga show, but one of the beluga's had recently had a baby (3 days before), so the show was canceled to allow mom and baby to bond. We were able to go in and see the new family. There was another bigger baby beluga that was swimming along with them. It was very neat, but the kids were ready to move onto the pirate movie pretty quickly.

The glasses were a big hit with the 3-D movie. Baylie was preparing herself to be scared, and Aiden was reassuring her that all she had to do was take off her glasses if she got too scared. It was fun, but by the end I was ready to take of my glasses b/c they were giving me a headache. I guess my eyes are a little more sensitive than when I was younger.

After the movie was over, Micah and Aiden went to do one of the rides in the kiddie section, while Baylie decided it was the perfect time for a fruit snack break.

The rest of the day was great, and we were able to catch every show, and even had time to take a break and cool down at the water park. Aiden particularly enjoyed the water ski show (he was saying "whoo-hoo" after every trick), and he even got a picture with the crew after the show. Baylie seemed to take it all in staying pretty quiet at the shows and then chattering about it after the fact. The kids enjoyed feeding the sea lions, even though Baylie was a little intimidated at first by one large, loud, hungry sea lion. He looked very well-fed, but still hungry. We finished the day exhausted but happy.

One thing to the next

What a crazy couple weekends in a row!  After returning from the Hill Country with the kiddos, M and I returned the next weekend for a trip with our Sunday School class.  It was nice to be able to do the grown up things without the kiddos running around.  I think that we both made comments on Friday night at dinner, how we had forgotten what is was like to eat a meal without interuptions and finish while the food was still warm!  How we appreciate the little things! :)  We had the chance to listen to some live music on friday night at the German restaurant we were at and just relax on the patio.  It was great! 

The next day we had decided to start off with visiting some wineries.  We started off at Becker Vineyards, which also has a lavendar farm.  It was beautiful, and they had built a new HUGE tasting room since the last time we had been down.  We were able to take a tour of the wine making process while there.  It was so neat to go down and see everything from start to finish. 

The next winery we stopped at was nice, but I think we all enjoyed the last one, Grape Creek, the best.  It is a beatiful Tuscan style winery with outdoor seating and an awesome view!  We did a little tasting then went out to the patio to enjoy some fire-grilled pizza, hands down some of the best pizza I have ever had!!

After the wineries, the girls decided it was time for a little shopping downtown.  We went up and down Main Street, while the guys enjoyed a classic car show in the square.  On Sunday we headed out early to pick up the dogs and the kiddos at a decent time.  I think the kids had just as good a time as we did considering they were spoiled by the grandparents all weekend! :)

Trying to recoup and get back into the swing of things took a couple days, but the house is mostly back in order and I even managed to make a couple new shirts, which I will be posting to the etsy site soon! :)

It was an eventful Memorial Day weekend. We left out of town on Friday to go visit family down in the Hill Country. It was a milestone for me taking a road trip on my own with the kids. (M was at a bachelor party for his friend getting married this summer.) My parents were caravanning down with us, so I wasn't completely on my own, thank goodness! :) It went relatively well, and I have to say that the attachable dual headrest DVD players were one of the best purchases I have made in the past couple years! The kids loved them so much that they sat in the car Thursday night watching a movie while we cleaned out the car. It made for an easy chore! We watched the movies most of the way down and the only whining was due to Miss B not getting her lunchable as quickly as she would have liked. ;) Once at our destination point, the trip was great! The kids got to play with their cousins , which they have anticipated and asked about almost everyday for the month prior. I got to enjoy the shopping and atmosphere of the hill country. We all got to enjoy some great home cooking from my aunt!! :) I think that may be one of the top things I look forward to when we go, along with seeing everyone of course! Our first morning out, we went to a pick your own fruit farm, where the kids enjoyed picking their own peaches, blackberries and strawberries. B did very good at asking about the blackberries "Is this one good? Is this one dark enough?" We ended up with a pretty small bag, but apparently it was the end of the season, and I am overly picky when it comes to things like that. A helped pick out some great peaches but got bored after a couple trees and wanted to make sure that his cousins didn't leave him behind.

After the farm, we went back and the kids got to swim in the pool next door. A is a very timid swimmer (even in the bath, he does not like any water on his face), so I was shocked to walk to the pool and see him in water wings going all around the pool by himself! I am pretty sure that will be our next purchase. B put on all the gear, water wings and goggles, but decided that these were more fashion apparel rather than useful and just sat in the shallow water and watched the kids. After swimming the kids and grandpas napped which allowed for the girls to do a little main street shopping. I was trying to limit my shopping because I knew we would be returning again the next weekend with some couples from our Sunday School class and would be spending money again! :) That evening I was able to relax a little bit in the backyard to a beautiful view (picture included).

We went out for pizza one night where there were live singers. They were pretty good, and B seemed to really appreciate the singing. After finishing eating, she wanted me to take her closer, so she and I moved up to a table right in front. It was a nice moment as she and I sat there snuggling listening to the music. I don't get those very often anymore because she is on the go 99% of the time. The singers saw her clapping for every song, so the dedicated a song to her and sang Puff the Magic Dragon. After this, they invited her up to sing with them. She wanted to go, but only if I carried her. They started singing Old McDonald and let her pick the animal sounds. The requirement was that the grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins make the sounds of the animals. It was pretty comical, especially when she chose monkey (obviously, we don't go over farm animals that often). By the end she was actually singing into the mic. Her first karaoke experience?

We had a bit of craziness on the way home, but all in all, we had a great weekend, but were very glad to be home Monday night! :)

First time blogger! :)

  

This is my first time to create or write a blog, so you will have to bear with me at first! :) I have started this blog to keep friends and family updated, as well as, give my ABCmommy customers a little glimpse into my life and family. I can promise that I won't be good about updating daily, but I will try to update regularly and as fun things happen in our lives.
As of right now we are busy as A's tball season is winding down. His last game will be the middle of June. At the end of the season, it's always bittersweet. While I am sad that his season is ending because he enjoys playing, and we enjoy watching, I will be happy to get my weekends back! :) As I say that though, I have already filled 6 Saturdays throughout June and July with survival swimming lessons for the kids. I figured it was time for A to learn to get his face wet without wiping it with a towel right after. It will be an interesting learning process, especially since I have been instructed to stay out of the water. I prefer it that way though because he will not depend on me to bail him out. Miss B, on the other hand, will probably jump in the water head first if her fearlessness follows her to the water. That child will stick her head under the faucet to rinse the shampoo from her hair while telling me, "No mama, I do it. You go 'way." Who knew two kids could be such opposites?!?
Other than that we are busy with work and church. Our Sunday School class is taking a weekend trip to the Hill Country Wineries next month, and we are very excited to have a grown up only trip and taste wine! :) I am still with Early Childhood Intervention and recently transferred to a new office closer to home. It's nice to have an already short commute be even shorter! I have also started making some sales of my children's clothes that I have been making so that is very exciting too! Hopefully, it will take off a little more, and we could build up some vacation money for either next spring or summer. I keep pretty busy in the evenings after the kiddos go to bed checking either the facebook or etsy page to make sure everything is updated and sales are being shipped. It's fun though to be creative and make some cute clothes for A and B!
Hope this didn't bore anyone too much, and there will be more entertaining posts to come! :)